Volnay Dinner with Lieu-dit Cru

Kevin Restaurant, Chicago IL
Tasted Friday, March 10, 2006 by Burgundy Al with 619 views

Introduction

The Lieu-dit Cru, our newly formed Chicago-based Burgundy group, got together for a dinner of mostly young top notch Volnay.

Flight 1 - Instead of Champagne (1 Note)

  • 1997 Vincent Dauvissat (René & Vincent) Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos 92 Points

    France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

    Tasting. Rich, powerful and (almost) lush aromatic start, which was uncharacteristic for Chablis. Palate was more classic and restrained with mostly citrus from middle to finish, along with very good minerality nad well textured for a 1997. Still probably not a long-term cellar hold, best today through 2012. I liked this a lot, others liked it a great deal more tonight.

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Flight 2 - "Blind whites" to Start (2 Notes)

Two related whites served blind, other than acknowledging a vineyard, vintage and/or producer relationship.

Flight 3 - Young Volnay to Start the Reds (2 Notes)

  • 2002 Domaine Michel Lafarge Volnay 1er Cru Les Caillerets 92 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Floral nose with good elements of red and black fruit. Rich and powerful fruit that took along time to open. Good spice from start to finish, showing licorice and white pepper. smoky red cherry, really coming through nicely on the finish. I think this needs until 2012 or later.

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  • 2002 Bouchard Père et Fils Volnay 1er Cru Caillerets Ancienne Cuvée Carnot 89 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Fragrant nose with black fruit and spice. Red and black cherry on palate showed a little more ripeness than I'd like, as well as some sweetness from fruit, tannins and oak. Open and accessible already, I didn't get a sense of lots of nuance or minerality tonight. More "good" than "interesting."

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Flight 4 - d'Angerville, Mostly Clos des Ducs (4 Notes)

  • 1996 Domaine Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Ducs 92 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Much lighter shade of red than expected but that didn't shortchange the wine's bright floral aromatics, showing Rainier cherry and roses. Similar red cherry comes through on the palate, although slightly hidden today behind big levels and acidity. Another wine that will need more time and would be easy to miss/lose its nuance if not tasted over the course of an evening, the 96 d'Angerville Ducs kept evolving and picking up more depth and spice over several hours.

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  • 1998 Domaine Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Ducs 91 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Delicate red fruit driven nose with great floral charm. Flavors of raspberry and strawberry, although not as spiced as in other vintages. Very approachable, subtle and nuanced, this is well done for what I've found generally to be a mediocre vintage in Volnay. At a very good place today.

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  • 2002 Domaine Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Ducs 93 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Incredibly concentrated nose shows dark fruit and a cupboard full of spices. Red fruit continues on to the palate, which is a bit dense and structured today. Minerality and acidity take center stage from middle to the end, with dark spiced fruit coming out on the very long, powerful finish. Hold to 2015 or later. I liked this more than most others tonight.

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  • 1999 Domaine Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Taillepieds

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Another young wine drinking surprisingly well tonight. Sweet black fruit was combined with a more rustic character than the Ducs described above. It was slightly shorter but very accessible and fun to drink now, and great with food

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Flight 5 - Lafon (3 Notes)

  • 2002 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-Du-Milieu 92 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Very fruit driven nose with some licorice, clove and cinnamon as well. Same spice blend came through on palate. Lots of red fruit - mostly strawberry and red cherry- with great overall texture. Fruit seemed to close down after 30-45 minutes in glass and tannins became more pronounced. I'd hold onto bottles of this until 2012 or later. Probably the most challenging wine to assess today.

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  • 1993 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-Du-Milieu 94 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Strawberry on the nose with good spice and great mushroom aromatics. Strawberry and raspberry on the palate , also nicely complemented by good earthy flavors and textures. Wonderful finish, very long. Still has lots of well integrated tannins, lots of acidity, so no worries about this wine fading any time in the next 15 years. This was one of the few bottles not given time to breathe, but still tied for second most votes for WOTN.

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  • 1999 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-Du-Milieu 95 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Red cherry, black cherry with great exotoc spice on nose, just trace floral elements in the background. Same fruit on palate, very clearly ripe and intense with excellent spice from both underlying fruit and oak. Drinking well now, but nuance unfolds on finish, so I think this will keep improving with more bottle age. Consensus WOTN.

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Flight 6 - Some More Volnay (2 Notes)

  • 1999 Domaine Leroy Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-Du-Milieu 91 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Elegant wine with accessible red fruit and good spice. Not as intensely perfumed as many other Leroy cuvees from 1999. Very subtle and charming on nose and palate without much complexity in the middle or finish. Either drink this in the next couple of years or give it to 2010 to see if really exciting spice somehow emerging. Certainly lovely, but not what i hoped for. Others liked it much more than I did.

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  • 1978 Camille Giroud Volnay 1er Cru Les Fremiets 90 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

    Very good color for its age. Quite a contrast to many of the evening’s younger Volnays. It had a wonderful complex nose, showing layers of fruit, mushroom and earth. The fruit seemed a bit faded after 30 minutes but the secondary character of this wine remained buoyant for an extended period. In many ways this was a thrilling finale to the evening’s wines because it hinted how these wonderful wines will develop as they improve and mature.

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